re: 2018 Football Recruiting Thread -- Final OP Update Edition

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Matthew Hill finally did it.

The 4-star wide receiver from Brookwood High (Ga.) has been the most likely to join Auburn’s class for months, but his hesitance to publicly commit has raised some questions. Those questions have all been answered.

On Thursday, Hill committed to Auburn to become the 12th commitment in the 2018 recruiting class. Despite the wait, Hill said the decision wasn’t tough.

“First, I grew up an Auburn fan, so I already knew what it was like. Ever since, I’ve just been there so many times, it just — in my mind — it’s just another home,” Hill told SEC Country two weeks ago. “I know Auburn like the back of my hand now, like I do Snellville. I know where everything is. I just feel comfortable in Auburn.”

The extended wait gave Hill a chance to do his due diligence. He visited South Carolina one more time with his high school coach who is a South Carolina grad. Hill stayed in communication with Crimson Tide and Gamecocks coaches. When official offer day came, Auburn, Alabama and South Carolina were the only schools to offer, which made sense considering those were the three programs he was still strongly considering.

As the 6-foot-2 wide receiver waited, some Tigers fans started to panic. But, as Hill puts it, he’s known for “a month and a half to two months” where he was going to school. He just wanted to be sure.

“I basically knew at Big Cat Weekend, the last time I visited Auburn,” Hill said. “I kinda knew before then, but Big Cat is really what set it off because I got to be around the new players, the ones that might commit, the coaching staff and just had a good time. I got to see their fun side at Auburn.”

With Hill’s commitment, Auburn added the No. 32 wide receiver and No. 160 overall prospect in the 2018 class, according to the 247Sports composite. Hill joined Shedrick Jackson as the second wide receiver in Auburn’s class. Hill’s commitment lifts Auburn up to No. 27 in the recruiting team rankings, one spot behind No. 26 Alabama.

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Coaches love to talk about their players, sure. But Philip Jones really loves to talk about Matthew Hill.

Jones is the head football coach at Brookwood High (Ga.) where Auburn’s newest commitment shines in Georgia’s highest classification. Hill is one of the top 160 players in the nation. He lines up at wide receiver, safety, running back and kick returner for the Broncos. But when Jones thinks of Hill, all of that is secondary.

Jones uses an intriguing word — one rarely used about incredible athletes — to describe his star pupil.

“I think best word I know to use to describe him: It’s just his effervescence,” Jones told SEC Country. “His joy that he brings to the task. He loves his teammates. He loves his coaches. He loves the game of football. And it just comes through so well in everything that he does.”

What does Hill do well? Everything, according to Jones.

Hill is clearly a standout wide receiver. He’s proven that on the high school football field and at camps. But last football season, when Brookwood’s starting running back went down, Jones didn’t hesitate turning to Hill at running back. Of course, Hill had no problem filling that role.

(Side note: I covered Hill during his freshman season at Prince Avenue Christian when I was a preps reporter at the Oconee Enterprise. In the first game I covered of his, Hill played running back in Jeff Herron’s run-happy offense. He ran for a 71-yard touchdown. He returned a 99-yard kick return for a touchdown in one game. That was fairly common for, at the time, a freshman.).

So, it makes perfect sense when Jones talks about Hill doing everything for Brookwood.

“He’s so versatile,” Jones said. “If he was just a wide receiver, like you said, I think he’d be one of the best wide receivers nationally. He can very much be a hybrid running back and wide receiver. You can throw him in the backfield, which we had to do. And about half of his offers from Power 5 schools came as a safety. And then in the return game, as well, he’s going to return kicks for us. He’s one of those electric kind of guys that can do it all and do it all well. He’s just a football player.”

But whenever Jones starts talking about Hill’s physical skill sets, he always transitions back to “all those other things” Hill does for a football team. It’s the competitiveness. It’s the desire to be the first to successfully complete every rep. It’s the hope that all his teammates and coaches are having as much fun playing the game as he is.

All of those combine to make Hill the ultimate glue guy for a program.

“When you’ve got a kid that’s that special and has that kind of mentality, that kind of joy that jumps to everyone else, then you’ve got a chance to have a special culture as a team. He’s a unique kid,” Jones said. “I’m proud to coach him and I’m proud to just have him as a part of my life.”

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Auburn has added another wide receiver to its 2018 commitment list.

Matthew Hill, a four-star recruit from Brookwood in Snellville, Ga., announced Thursday night on Twitter his intentions to sign with Auburn.

"After a long process, I've decided to commit to Auburn University," Hill told Rivals.com. "I fit in, it feels like home and Auburn has always been a dream school for me."

Hill, who is 6-foot-1 and weighs 185 pounds, chose Auburn over his two other finalists, Alabama and South Carolina.

"It was a hard decision," Hill said. "My decision was made from my heart."

Hill is familiar with Auburn. He has visited the Tigers’ campus several times, including trips to the two main recruiting events of the summer: Big Cat in June and the Cookout in July. Hill also attended Auburn’s Junior Day in January and A-Day game in April.

“I’m very comfortable at Auburn,” Hill said in June. “I grew up an Auburn fan so I’ve been comfortable there since I was a little kid.”

Hill is the second receiver to commit to Auburn’s 2018 class. He joins Hoover’s Shedrick Jackson, who committed to the Tigers in June. Auburn now has a total of 12 commitments in the class.

"I'm glad to say that I'm an Auburn Tiger," Hill said. "War Eagle!"

Hill's primary recruiter from Auburn is wide receivers coach Kodi Burns.

Rivals ranks Hill the No. 22 athlete in the 2018 class and No. 32 player from Georgia.

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Auburn held off Alabama and South Carolina to land a commitment from four-star athlete Matthew Hill. The 6-foot-1, 190 pound playmaker out of Snellville (Ga.) Brookwood was at one time a Tennessee lean early in the process, but about six months ago, Auburn became the favorite and they haven't trailed since.

"Auburn has always been a school I liked and all that, but at first, Tennessee was my favorite," said Hill. "Once the communication picked up between Auburn and I in the spring of my junior year, Auburn really started to be the favorite.

"In my mind, I decided it was Auburn on Big Cat weekend. I went ahead and visited Alabama and South Carolina to just make sure I was not missing anything.

"I really have known for a little while now, so it feels great to be committed to Auburn now."

Hill is very familiar with Auburn. He grew up following the program, he has visited there more times than he can count and he could not be happier.

"I really just followed my heart. As my relationships got stronger with the Auburn coaches, I knew it was the school for me.

"I definitely feel at home there. I love the academics Auburn has to offer and I also feel I could compete for early playing time there.

"A lot of my family likes Auburn and a lot of us grew up big fans of Cam Newton, so this is a big moment for me and my family."

"I am feeling great right now because the recruiting process is over for me," said Hill. "It has been a long journey, but I am committed to Auburn, I can focus on my senior year and I can just relax.

"I know now that a lot of texting from coaches with slow down and I will just be able to settle in and get back to being myself."

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Matthew Hill grew up an Auburn fan. Now, he’s going to be a Tiger.

Hill, a 4-star receiver from Snellville (Ga.) Brookwood, committed to Auburn over Alabama and South Carolina on Thursday.

Why Auburn?

"Basically, it was just the coaching saff," Hill said. "Wherever I go, I wanted to feel like home. And just playing time."

According to Hill, he knew what his choice would be "a month and a half, two months ago."

For the Tigers, this is a significant pickup.

The 6-feet-2, 185-pound Hill is the No. 32 receiver and No. 160 overall prospect in the industry generated 247Sports Composite. He is commitment No. 12 for Auburn.

"It's a lot of stress off of me," Hill said. "Because I know I can start focusing on my academics and just the team in general."

Hill is known for his speed and big-play ability.

Although Hill never publicly named a leader prior to his commitment, Auburn has been the presumed favorite for awhile.

Hill's affection for the Tigers began early. His god-father ran cross country at Auburn.

The Tigers began to heavily pursue him during his junior year. Already, he has made at least four known visits to Auburn this year, most recently in July when he caught passes from 5-star quarterback Justin Fields, a friend.

Arguably, this is second-year receivers coach Kodi Burns’ biggest commitment since joining the Auburn staff.

Hill was second-team all-state as a junior after catching 41 passes for 849 yards and nine touchdowns, rushing for 625 yards and recording 24 tackles on defense. Additionally, he returned 19 kickoffs for 512 yards.

In one game, a playoff win over West Forsyth (Ga.), Hill accounted for 347 all-purpose yards and five touchdowns.

Auburn now has two receivers committed as Hill joins Shedrick Jackson of Hoover (Ala.). The Tigers are likely to add one to two more to the class.

How hard will Hill be recruiting for the Tigers now that he's on board?

"Probably hard," Hill said. "There's a few players that I know could make a difference."

One of those players: Fields.

"We played in the Rising Seniors game last year and that's when me and him really got that bond," Hill said.

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Auburn has finished in the top 10 of the rankings each of the past five recruiting cycles. But the Tigers have their work cut out to make it six top 10s in a row.

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Gonzalez was a NQ so that bumps it up at least one, right?

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Can we take 25 this year? I thought the number was 22-23.

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